Flow and Heat Transfer Characteristics of Cylindrical Structures with Corner Radius Variation: Tandem, SIDE-BY-SIDE, and Flow-Induced Vibration

Abstract

This study investigates the effects of corner radius variation on thermohydraulic parameters around two equal isothermal square cylinders in tandem and side-by-side arrangements. In particular, a two-dimensional numerical study of unsteady laminar-forced convective heat transfer was conducted for a Reynolds number of 100. The Prandtl number was held constant at 0.71. The ratio of cylinder diameter over corner radius was varied from 0.0 to 0.5 with an increment of 0.1. The thermohydraulic parameters such as Strouhal number, drag coefficient, lift coefficient, and Nusselt number were discussed for various spacing ratios. In side-by-side arrangement, the Nusselt number increased for all corner radii with increasing distance between cylinders. However in tandem arrangement, as distance increased from the wake length of upstream circular cylinders, heat transfer was improved for both bodies. Moreover, the mean Nusselt number for the upstream cylinder approached a single cylinder value, while mean Nusselt number for the downstream cylinder was lower than that of a single cylinder. Furthermore, the flow induced vibration was coupled, which enhanced the heat transfer of a single square cylinder.